Avraham Ben-Yitzhak
Avraham Ben-Yitzhak (Hebrew: אברהם בן יצחק‎; January 17, 1919 - April 8, 2008) was a Jewish Haganah fighter and later Israeli soldier who fought in World War II with the Jewish Brigade and fought for the Haganah in the late 1940s in the Israeli War of Independence, seeing further service in the Suez Crisis and the Six-Day War. Early life and family Avraham's father, Yakub Ben-Yitzhak (born Yakov Goldberg; 1892-1965), was a Polish Jew from Lublin in the Pale of Settlement who had immigrated to Palestine in 1912. His mother, Rebecca Weizmann (1894-1984), a Russian-Ukrainian Jew, came from Kamianets-Podilskyi, also in the Pale. Avraham, who was born in the primarily Jewish settlement of Rehovot in Mandatory Palestine in 1919, soon became a committed zionist like his parents. Yakub and Rebecca actively worked to bring Jewish refugees to Palestine, especially in the wake of the spread of Nazism in Europe. Haganah activity Arab Revolt In 1936, with tensions growing between the Arabic and Jewish communities of Palestine, a violent clash seemed increasingly likely, and Ben-Yitzhak joined a local Haganah cell in order to protect his community and family. This mobile unit began to accumulate arms and funds from overseas for the purposes of local defense. In April 1936, a nationalist uprising by Arab groups demanding independence began with a strike all across Palestine. In Jaffa, Arab rioters attacked Jews in the streets, and Ben-Yitzhak and a group of volunteers travelled to the port city to defend Jews and their homes. Assisting the British police, the Haganah fighters suppressed the riots within a few days and Ben-Yitzhak returned home to Rehovot to protect the community there. Ben-Yitzhak fought against several attacks on the settlement by Arab attackers, and by October 1936, the general strike had ceased, and the colonial authorities attempted to make a settlement between the two warring communities. The failure of the Peel Commission in September 1937 saw the violence resume with even more intensity. Faced with increasing attacks, the Haganah established Fosh units, mobile fighters capable of countering pogroms with aggressive action. Ben-Yitzhak was given command of a small group of Jewish fighters, and they took part in numerous battles against the Arab insurgents in the hills east of the main Jewish settlements. As the attacks increased throughout 1938, the British authorities turned to the Fosh units to help quell the insurgency, and Ben-Yitzhak and his men were deputized on an unofficial basis by the British as a part of the security forces. In 1939, the Fosh was replaced by the Hish, a permanent Jewish standing army. Later that year, the revolt petered out, but there was a new obstacle for the zionist movement to contend with. Released in 1939 by the British government, the White Paper severely capped Jewish emigration to Palestine and hampered hopes for a Jewish state in the region. Ben-Yitzhak, furious with the decree, helped to organize acts of civil disobedience in both Rehovot and Tel-Aviv, protesting the British colonial government. However, Ben-Yitzhak's priorities changed in September 1939 when Great Britain declared war against Nazi Germany. He offered his serviced to the British colonial authorities, wishing to fight against the Germans once the earliest reports of Nazi brutality against Jews in Eastern Europe reached Palestine. He was turned down initially, but in September 1940, Palestinians were allowed to form companies in the British Army. Ben-Yitzhak immediately enlisted. Military service World War II Ben-Yitzhak was brought into a Jewish company of the Royal East Kent Regiment as a lieutenant. The Jewish Company's duties mainly revolved around security, and Lieutenant Ben-Yitzhak was mostly involved in guarding British military installations and convoys around Palestine. During this time, he was still involved in covert Haganah activity. In 1941, he and his men were deployed to Egypt, where they guarded a camp for German and Italian prisoners of war near Gaza. Though not deployed in combat, Ben-Yitzhak and his men were kept on high alert in the event of an Axis breakthrough in the Western Desert. In August 1942, the 1st Battalion, Palestine Regiment was established, made up of Palestinian Jews in British service. Following British victories in Egypt, it was clear that the Palestine Regiment was not to be deployed in combat. In June 1943, when the campaign in North Africa was over, the regiment was deployed to Libya, where they were based in Benghazi. The Palestinians would only be involved in garrison duty for the next year. In September 1944, the Jewish Brigade was organized, comprising units of Palestinian Jews. The brigade was immediately marked for deployment, and in October, departed the Middle East for Italy. After arriving at the port of Taranto, Lieutenant Ben-Yitzhak and his men engaged in training exercises at Fiuggi, south of Rome. Ben-Yitzhak was elevated to the rank of captain and given command of a company during this period. During the winter, the brigade moved to the front, where it took up a defensive position near Alfonsine. In March 1945, Ben-Yitzhak's battalion moved out to Ravenna, where they launched several successful attacks against the German forces opposite them. At the end of the month, the Jewish Brigade moved to the Senio River sector of the front. In April 1945, the Allied forces in Italy began the last offensive of the campaign, Operation Grapeshot. Captain Ben-Yitzhak led his company across the Senio, driving back the Germans on the other side. Over the next few days, the Jewish soldiers fought to widen the bridgehead, driving off several German counterattacks. Ben-Yitzhak and the rest of the brigade continued to attack throughout the month, pushing up the right flank of the Allied forces. Early in May, the campaign in Italy ended, and Nazi Germany surrendered unconditionally shortly afterwards. At the end of the war, Captain Ben-Yitzhak and the Jewish Brigade were in the town of Tarvisio, which they had recently captured. The town was at a three-way border with Italy, Yugoslavia, and Austria. In addition to official occupation duties, which included dealing with border disputes between British and Italian officials and Yugoslav partisans, the brigade was also active in rescuing survivors of the Holocaust. Ben-Yitzhak and his men helped to covertly smuggle many European Jews to Palestine. Also, Ben-Yitzhak and a number of Jewish soldiers formed avenging squads, who went out secretly and killed Nazi war criminals who had committed atrocities against Jews. He was also involved in running guns to the Haganah back in Palestine. In July, the Jewish Brigade was redeployed to Belgium and the Netherlands, where it continued its activities. Ben-Yitzhak and his men continued to rescue Holocaust survivors as well as track down and kill Nazis. Early in 1946, the brigade was sent to Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany, and was disbanded in May. The men of the brigade departed Europe, sailed to Alexandria, and traveled back to Palestine by land. Palestine Civil War Back in Palestine, tensions were rapidly intensifying between the Jewish and Arab communities as the British Mandate for Palestine approached its end. The Haganah was arming for war, and Ben-Yitzhak rejoined the Hish. He was taken as a captain in the 12th Barak Battalion, Levanoni Brigade, which was responsible for the defense of the north of the country. Ben-Yitzhak arrived at a time when the Haganah had pulled its support from the Jewish anti-British alliance, and with British forces leaving the country, war between the Jews and the Arabs was sure to break out. In November 1947, after the United Nations passed its partition plan, Palestine erupted in civil war. During a wave of bombings, shootings, and other acts of violence between the two groups, Captain Ben-Yitzhak and the Levanoni Brigade were responsible for protecting Jewish settlements in the Galilee area from Arab attackers. They fought off a number of raids and launched counterattacks, seeing much success against the Arab militants. However, the attacks intensified in early 1948, with Arab Liberation Army regulars arriving to bolster the militants. In April the Levanoni Brigade was split, with Ben-Yitzhak and the 12th Battalion being allocated to the new 1st Golani Brigade. By March, the danger to the Jewish settlements was greater than ever, and in April 1948, the Haganah launched their counteroffensive. At the Battle of Mishmar HaEmek, Captain Ben-Yitzhak and his men helped a kibbutz hold off an Arab Liberation Army attack before counterattacking, driving the ALA out of Ghubayya al-Tahta, Ghubayya al-Fauqa and Khirbet Beit Ras. They took Tiberias the next day amid heavy Arab resistance, fighting more intense actions against ALA forces throughout April. The Golani Brigade captured Safed in May, and went on the attack again in Operation Gideon. There, Ben-Yitzhak and his men took Baysan and several other villages. After capturing al-Shajara, they assisted in the assault on Beit She'an. The civil war phase of the fighting ended in a victory for the Jews, but there was still a greater threat. Arab-Israeli War On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel declared its independence. The next day, forces from seven countries of the Arab League invaded Palestine. Captain Ben-Yitzhak and his company, now part of the Israeli Defense Forces were engaged by an attacking Syrian force. At the Battles of the Kinarot Valley, he and his men fought back the Syrians, successfully holding the villages of Degania Alef and Bet in the Golan Heights. They were also able to support the Israeli forces to the south, helping to repulse several Iraqi attacks on Gesher. Ben-Yitzhak and his men counterattacked at the end of the month at the Battle of Jenin, retaking several towns from the Iraqis. Jenin, however, was recaptured by the Iraqis in June. Also in June, a ceasefire was brokered between the Israelis and the Arab coalition. The IDF used this critical lull in the fighting to rearm and reorganize their forces. Fighting resumed early in July 1948. Captain Ben-Yitzhak and his men held Sejera against an Arab Liberation Army attack, after which the Golani Brigade launched Operation Dekel, driving ALA forces out of Al-Mujaydil, Nazareth, Lubya, Hittin, and several other villages. After this offensive, another truce was struck, providing the Israelis with even more valuable time to prepare for the fighting to come. In October 1948, Arab paramilitaries of the ALA violated the truce and attacked Israeli positions. Ben-Yitzhak and the Golani Brigade went on the offensive in Operation Hiram, making a diversionary attack on the ALA positions at Eilabun, capturing it along with Suhmata, al-Farradiyya, Kafr 'Inan, Sabalan, Mughar, and Rameh. They fought back ALA, Syrian, and Lebanese defenders, dealing a major blow to the Arab forces in the area and capturing nearly all of the Galilee region for Israel. In December 1948, the Golani Brigade was transferred to south of Palestine to take part in the Battles of the Sinai in the Negev Desert against Egypt. Captain Ben-Yitzhak and his men saw their first action here in Operation Assaf, in which they captured several key positions from the Egyptians and repelled a counterattack. This action was followed by Operation Horev, a major offensive in the Negev. Ben-Yitzhak led his men in an attack which pushed back the Egyptian forces on the Gaza-Rafah road. Here, they fought the Battle of Hill 86, raiding 'Abasan before taking Hill 112 and Hill 86, suffering a major Egyptian counterattack on the latter and being forced to retreat. Nonetheless, the Israelis had pushed deep into enemy territory and the Golani Brigade was right on the border of Egypt before it was ordered to pull back. Ben-Yitzhak and his men then took part in the Battle of Rafah in Gaza in January 1949, taking Hill 102 and the cemetery from the Egyptians and defeating several counterattacks. By this point, the fighting between Israel and the Arab nations was almost at an end. Ben-Yitzhak and the Golani Brigade were given one final mission in March 1949, to secure the Sinai Peninsula. In Operation Uvda, the Israelis launched their attack, with Ben-Yitzhak and his men driving the Jordanian forces out of Ein Harouf and Ein Ghamr. After capturing Gharandal, the Israelis captured Umm Rashrash in the Gulf of Eilat in the last action of the war. Border conflicts The armistice negotiations were concluded in July 1949, but there were still many disputes as to where the border was to be drawn. By this point, Ben-Yitzhak and the Golani Brigade were back in the north of the country, facing off with Syrian forces on the other side of the border. In 1951, they fought a sharp and inconclusive engagement against the Syrians at Tel Mutilla in the demilitarized zone. In October 1955, tensions with the Egyptians on the southern border began to rise as they blockaded Israeli ports and sponsored infiltrations by Fedayeen terrorists. A cross-border raid with the Egyptians brought about Operation Volcano in November, a punitive attack by the Israelis. Captain Ben-Yitzhak led an attack against the Egyptians at Ras-Siram, taking the position and capturing prisoners and war materiel. Suez Crisis In July 1956, a new Egyptian regime under Nasser seized the Suez Canal from France and Britain. The Allies, which included Israel, began planning military action. The Israelis would launch a ground invasion of the Sinai, which was put into action in October 1956 in Operation Kadesh. The Golani Brigade's initial objective was control over the Gaza Strip, and Captain Ben-Yitzhak and his men were to lead the assault on Rafah. Attacking outside the city, they drove the Egyptians back from Crossroads 12 and a number of key hilltop positions, securing the area outside the city. They took the city, which had been recently evacauted by the Egyptians, and secured positions on the Rafah-Khan Yunis road. Running into heavy Egyptian resistance at the Jeradi Pass, Ben-Yitzhak and his men pushed through and in November, took El Arish. For a week, they drove through northern Sinai, passing through scattered Egyptian resistance, until they were given the order to halt due to international pressure. The Israeli forces remained in the Sinai for some time, until it was clear that Egypt would not be considered a high level threat and the Golani Brigade was redirected back north. Rotem Crisis and conflicts with the UAR Now based in the north of Israel, near the Golan Heights, the brigade was on high alert following the 1958 unification of Egypt and Syria into the United Arab Republic. Ben-Yitzhak, who had recently been promoted to major, and his men were positioned ready to fight the Syrians. Following the Syrian shelling of Israeli positions, the Golani Brigade launched Operation Hargol in January 1960. Major Ben-Yitzhak led his men into the abandoned village of al-Tawafiq, where they defeated the local Syrian forces and destroyed their base before returning across the border. In February, following the mobilization of Egyptian forces on the southern border, the Golani Brigade was deployed to the northern Negev outside of Rafah, and it seemed as if war would break out. However, negotiations defused the situation and the brigade was stood down. After the brigade was redirected to the north, in March 1962 they launched a raid against the Syrians codenamed Operation Swallow. Attacking the Syrian base at Nuqeib on the Sea of Galilee, the Israeli soldiers inflicted casualties and generally wreaked havoc before returning over the border, deterring Syrian harrassment of Israeli fishermen. In May 1965, Ben-Yitzhak and his men took part in an operation which saw them attack Jordanian positions at Shuet Nimrin in the Jordan Valley. Six-Day War In June 1967, several Arab nations attacked Israel. Major Ben-Yitzhak's battalion was engaged immediately by Jordanian forces coming from the West Bank. Holding their ground, the Israeli soldiers repulsed the Jordanians and counterattacked, beginning their own offensive into the West Bank. Ben-Yitzhak led an assault on Jenin, which failed despite fierce attempts by his men to take it. After finally capturing Jenin, the Golani Brigade took part in the drive on Nablus, which they assaulted and seized from the Jordanians after more intense close-quarter fighting. After this, the Jordanians retreated, and the Israeli soldiers were ordered to halt their advance. It was not long, however, before Ben-Yitzhak and his men were hurriedly relocated north for the planned assault on the Golan Heights, codenamed Operation Hammer. Attacking the heights, Ben-Yitzhak's forces met with heavy Syrian opposition as they fought to capture the formidable Tel Faher position. Tel Faher was taken with heavy losses, but the Israelis were free to continue their push into Syrian territory. The Golani Brigade helped secure Mount Hermon, before pushing onward in the face of fierce Syrian resistance. After taking the fortified village of Banias, the Israeli soldiers continued to drive unopposed across the plateau until they reached the ceasefire line. After this, the war ended, having lasted just six days. Retirement After the Six-Day War, there was little action for the Golani Brigade except for watching out for Palestinian Fedayeen terrorists. In October 1968, Ben-Yitzhak decided to call it a day and retired from the Israeli Defense Forces. Personal life In August 1950, Avraham married Miriam Fleischmann, a German-Jewish Holocaust survivor who had been a soldier in his company during the 1948 war. They bought a house in Tel Aviv in the Tzahalon neighborhood, and lived there throughout Avraham's military service and after. They had four children: Daniel, Itai, Yael, and Yosef. In 1970, two years after retiring, Ben-Yitzhak became a columnist for the Yedioth Tel Aviv newspaper. He wrote articles on foreign policy, military history, and general stories about the IDF. He was known for his conservative Zionist viewpoints. He stopped writing in 1998. On January 17, 2008, Avraham Ben-Yitzhak died in a hospital near his home. Views Above all, Ben-Yitzhak was a militant Zionist, believing the whole of Palestine to be the rightful Jewish homeland. He believed that Palestinian Arabs had a place in Israel, but only if they conformed to Israeli law. During the 1948 war, Ben-Yitzhak believed the goal of the Arab coalition to be the extermination of the Jewish people, similar to the actions of the Nazis in the Holocaust. This belief shaped his worldview for the next century, and he continued to back every major military action by the IDF, including the operations of 1973, 1976, 1978, 1982, and 2006. Ben-Yitzhak backed the Herut Party in the first Knesset election in 1949, believing the withdrawal of the IDF from captured territories to be a fatal mistake. He continued to vote for Herut until 1988 when the party meged with Likud, which he continued to support. Equipment As a Haganah fighter in the 1930s, Ben-Yitzhak carried a Lee-Enfield Mk III bolt-action rifle and a Webley Mk IV revolver. He used these weapons throughout his service with the Jewish Brigade and during the 1947-1949 war. From the 1950s to the late 1960s, he carried an FN FAL self-loading rifle and a Browning Hi-Power pistor.Category:Soldiers in World War II Category:Soldiers in the Israeli War of Indepence Category:Soldiers in the Suez Crisis Category:Soldiers in the Six-Day War Category:Mandatory Palestinian soldiers Category:Israeli soldiers Category:British Commonwealth soldiers